Historical Incidents

Incident Summary

Date
2019-03-16
Location
Pharaoh Lake
Location Description
Approximately 25km WSW of Banff, AB
Province
AB
Coordinates
51.11454 °, -115.91476 °
Elevation
2400 m
Activity
Ski touring
Involvement
2
Injury
0
Fatality
1
Description
A ski-tourer and split boarder triggered a persistent slab avalanche while ascending above Pharaoh Lake. Both were caught and partially buried. One person was able to extricate themselves and their partner, then obtained assistance from another party who were able to summon assistance via personal location devices. A Parks Canada Visitor Safety team evacuated the injured person who later succumbed to injuries in hospital.

Avalanches

Date/TimeSizeTypeTriggerElevationAspectSlab widthSlab Thickness
2.0SSa2400 mNE80 m50 cm

Weather

Present TempMax TempMin Temp24hr TrendWind SpeedWind DirectionSky ConditionPrecipitation Type & Intensity
--------

Weather Comment: Nearest weather station temperature was about -4 at time of incident.

Snowpack

Snowpack24hr SnowStorm SnowStorm Date
----

Documents

No documents available.